Therese in Taiwan: 85°C Cafe

Not to generalize or anything, but I'm pretty sure that a lot of us are familiar with Starbucks Coffee, am I right? Well, have you heard of 85度C Cafe (85°C Cafe)? It's this Taiwanese coffee shop that's very popular in... where else? Taiwan!

They have over 300+ branches here, and according to their website, they also have branches in Australia, USA, and China.

My cousins like to drink their teas topped with sea salt whipped cream. I guess you could say that it's the Taiwanese version of the Philippines' rock salt with cheese drink. When I heard about it, I wanted to try it for myself.

I got the cold version (there's also the hot version) of the Sea Salt Green Tea (30NT ~ PhP 45)

Look at that yummy sea salt whipped cream! I'd prefer to have this with milk tea rather than plain tea, but it's yummy nonetheless. The drink had the right balance of sweetness, bitterness, and saltiness. Plus, it's fairly cheap.

Another thing we've tasted at this cafe is their 8-inch Classic Tiramisu cake. My aunt bought it for my birthday! Hee.

8-inch Classic Tiramisu cake | 480NT (~ PhP 720)

I don't really know how much a cake sells for in the Philippines (because it's been a while since I've had any) so I don't know if this counts as a bit on the expensive side or just right.

It was very delicious though! Tiramisu is one of the cakes I love (aside from cheesecake), and this one was just right! The cake wasn't soggy (cos I've had soggy Tiramisu before) and it wasn't so sweet. Buon appetito!

Saint's Alp Teahouse

It was my first time to try Saint's Alp Teahouse. I brought my family to Saint's Alp Katipunan, located right above the Fullybooked branch along Katipunan Avenue, in front of Ateneo. I have been really curious about this place, as I have tried other milk tea and tea stores which have taken Manila by storm, and sprouted like mushrooms everywhere you look. Lucky for tea lovers like myself, we have a lot of options to choose from.



Saint's Alp Teahouse has a nicely decorated interior, which provides comfy seats and great ambiance. It isn't just a tea shop, because it also offers a variety of food and beverage items for customers to choose from (which is also good, come to think of it).




And since I had Php 1000 gift certificate to use that night, I browsed through a very long menu, and decided to order these for the family to try:



We ordered the 2 Taiwanese Breaded Chops (Chicken and Pork) with Marinated Minced Pork add ons (Php 195 + Php 60 = Php 255): Quite honestly, I like the chicken better than the pork. The chicken chops were okay, but with the minced pork combined, it was good and filling. We also got a Large Chicken Breast (Php 110) to add on to the chops.



An all time Filipino breakfast favorite, the Beef Tapa w/ Garlic Rice & Egg (Php 195), I think, was the better choice. The tapa was soft, tasty, and flavorful.



For cheese lovers, you might want to try their Cheesy Tempura Balls (Php 90), which is a good appetizer. Watch out for the oozing hot cheese, if you don't want to scald your tongue. It's fried cheese in light tempura batter.



A must try off their menu is the Matcha (half-and-half) Peanut Butter Toast with Tea (Php 90). Matcha flavor and peanut butter with honey green tea equals perfect combination. The toast is a perfect snack, combined with a perfect hot tea, which is flavorful.




The drinks reminded me why the place is called a teahouse. Surely, I can say that the beverage is good. As for drinks, we got the Almond Milk Tea (Php 115) and Blueberry Double Chocolate Sorbies (Php 130). The almond milk tea is a refreshing taste, something different from what I have tasted so far. I think it's good for almond lovers, or those who want the tea taste hidden. The Blueberry Double Chocolate Sorbies is one of the best iced blended drinks you should try in Saint's Alp. Who would have imagined blueberry and chocolate (double) actually works. It's a little sweet for my taste though, other than that it's a perfect cooler!



Last, but definitely not the least. This is the star of the night. The best drink I have tasted in Saint's Alp Teahouse. It's actually not a tea-based drink, but it's great for coffee lovers, like myself. Sumiyaki Coffee with Coffeeagar (Php 150). Really good strong coffee with coffee jelly on ice. Yummy! :)



Saint's Alp Teahouse
2/F Regis Center, 327 Katipunan Avenue, Quezon City
G/F Forbeswood Parklane, Rizal Drive, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig
Tel#: 990-2194 (Katipunan), 478-7135 (Fort Branch)
http://www.saintsalp.com.hk/

Gandiva Cafe and Archery Range + Giveaway

Gandiva Cafe and Archery Range + Giveaway
December 9, 2011
By Tiffy and Nicole

Gandiva Cafe (pronounced gandeeva) is the first archery pro shop in the Philippines that's geared towards health and fitness. They offer not only a chance to learn (and do) archery, they also serve vegetarian/vegan food (they have both!) in their cafe. They're really into organic ingredients and they buy it locally.

Their 18-meter range. Tonight, however, the targets are much closer to cater to noobz like us!

They also sell some merchandise. Btw, FREE wifi access for only one drink order!

For vegans, they serve pastries that contain no milk/eggs. I believe that they also have pastries containing milk/eggs for the lacto-ovo vegetarians.

The National Yoga Club of the Philippines also gave a demonstration. Apparently, Gandiva Cafe and Archery Range will also be offering yoga classes. 

We were served their Gandiva VG Burger (Php 198), Four Cheese pizza (Php 225 12-inch, P355 18-inch), Bacon cheese burger (Php 275 12-inch, Php 420 18-inch), and Tuna Pesto (Php 198).

Nicole and I both thought that the Gandiva VG Burger is a little too dry for our taste. Their thin crust pizza is crunchy--the Four Cheese pizza has a slightly sweet taste and their Bacon Cheese Burger doesn't really taste like bacon cheese burger. We ♥ the chili sauce that comes with the pizza. Their Tuna Pesto is good--the taste is not too strong, perfect for those who aren't too keen with herbs. Funnily, the fake meat that came with the pesto, although made from soy, tasted a bit like spam (or there might be something wrong with my tastebuds). 

Their bestsellers are the Tomato Basil Pizza (Php 220 12-inch, Php 350 18-inch) and the Veggie Supreme Pizza (Php 275 12-inch, Php 420 18-inch)

The menu is promising although I think that they have a lot to improve on if they want people to start going veggie!

We were able to chat with Chef Lali Balagtas and let us tell you--she is one of the bubbliest person we both met! When we learned her name, Nicole suddenly went, "Are you related to that Balagtas?" Chef Lali was puzzled, "Which Balagtas?" Nicole continued, "You know! The one who wrote Florante at Laura!" Chef Lali burst out laughing--actually, we both did! No, she's not.

Chef Lali actually hasn't eaten any sort of meat or fish her whole life. This is because her whole family's vegetarian and she was raised as one. Her mom eventually let them decide whether or not they want to start eating meat or keep being a vegetarian. (One small boo-boo: one time, she accidentally ate pasta that contained anchovy even after specifically requesting for it to be removed.) She's lacto vegetarian so she still eats cheese--something that she can't give up. 

Marti Bismark (left), holding a compound bow, explains how it differs from a recurve bow (held by Romnick Balmeo), which is the only bow permitted in the Olympics. The compound bows are more often used for hunting.

Earlier this evening, I was very fortunate to be seated at the table beside that of Tim Bismark, a consultant for the archery range, who passionately talked about his love of archery. Archery, according to him, is an ancient art form that helps man understand focus. An archer for 5 years, he has previously suffered two strokes before. Archery was, according to him, one of the reasons for his faster recovery. 

Nicole has a natural flare for archery! She hit the bulls-eye twice.

Archery Range and Equipment Rental:
Range Fees: Php 150 per hour
Equipment Rental: Php 200 per hour
Instructor's Fees: Php 250 per hour
*They also have a lesson package for Php 6,000 that includes 10 2-hour sessions.

They are open from 9 AM to 9 PM. Friday nights, as well as Saturdays and Sundays are usually busy times for the archery range.

We all got Gandiva shirts.

Now the exciting part: I will be giving away my haul for the night. My haul includes a Gandiva shirt, a Gandiva tumbler, a small bottle of Lavender & Vanilla organic room and linen fragrance, a small bottle of sportspray all-around antibacterial sports gear deodorizer and disinfectant, and a 150-gram pack of 100% pure cocosugar. (I wonder if Gandiva can sponsor a free hour for the winner? PLZ OH PLZ)



This giveaway is open only to Philippine residents--or nonresidents if you're sure I can maybe give it to you some day when I end up in your country? :)

Here's what you have to do:

1. Like Manila Foodistas on Facebook (it's also in the sidebar)
2. Follow us on Google Friend Connect (in the sidebar, just click JOIN THIS SITE--you can use either your twitter/google account/yahoo to follow).
3. Like Gandiva Cafe and Archery Range on Facebook
4. Leave a comment with your Facebook/twitter name and the Google Friend Connect account name that you used.

(BONUS! +3 raffle entries) On the Disqus form below, click the "like" button and share on either Facebook or Twitter. Please make sure that the Facebook post is set to public. !In your comment, please say that you did the bonus.

You can join until December 16, 2011 (12 MN) and we'll announce the winner later that day (and email you too)! :)

Visit Gandiva Cafe and Archery Range and get your free 6-arrow trial.
Gandiva Cafe and Archery Range
Address: 7th floor One Corporate Centre Bldg.,
Julia Vargas St. cor Meralco Ave., Ortigas,
Pasig City, Philippines
Landline number: (02) 638-8711 Fax #: (02) 571-9999
Mobile # (63) 9175854451 (63) 9175854459
Website: www.gandiva.com.ph
Email: info [a] gandiva.com.ph

One Corporate Centre Location Map

How to get to One Corporate Centre

Tiffy in Japan | 花茶 Cafe and Dining

Tiffy's Stay in Japan
花茶 | Ka Tja Cafe and Dining

Restaurant across the street from Nagoya City Museum

On my fifth day of my internship last term, we went to Nagoya City Museum and Nagoya Science Museum. After our trip to Nagoya City Museum, we ate at a restaurant across the street from the museum.

And their lunch set costs around ¥600. Pretty affordable.

The lunch came with stuffed meatloaf, rice, and soup. And the place is pretty quaint. It's small and cozy. It looks like a small house turned restaurant. The place can probably only serve 20 odd people at a time.